


rivers & roads

by neozone



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Childhood Friends, M/M, Single Parent Mark Lee (NCT), band au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-02-23 11:40:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23644147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neozone/pseuds/neozone
Summary: In which Donghyuck is the lead vocalist of an up-and-coming band, Mark is a record store owner trying to raise his daughter by himself, and fate has a funny way of bringing childhood friends back together when they least expect it.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Comments: 7
Kudos: 65





	rivers & roads

Three years ago, two hours before their last Battle of the Bands together in high school, Donghyuck found Mark on the rooftop of their apartment building. 

Mark was sitting cross-legged on the concrete, pencil tucked behind one ear as he thumbed through a Moleskine that Jeno had gotten him for his birthday the summer before. It showed a year’s worth of use, the leather front covered in peeling stickers and the spine bent from all the times Mark had cracked it open. 

Back then, he had a habit of waking up at three in the morning and scrawling aimless bits of words and phrases until he felt spent enough to go back to sleep. Donghyuck knew; Mark slept over at his place enough times throughout the years they’d known each other since childhood, kicking his way past Donghyuck on the bed hours before their alarm so he could get to his notebook whenever inspiration struck. 

Mark didn’t do much sleeping over anymore by then. Even when he did, he didn’t sleep next to Donghyuck, stubborn about sleeping on the floor.

Donghyuck had figured that might be for the best.

Mark didn’t notice Donghyuck approaching—he never did, not when he was like this, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration, uncaring of everything but the beat he was tapping along to in his head. Mark was unavailable to the world when he was writing, too caught up in chasing his ideal version of a song he would never actually play for anyone. 

Donghyuck crouched nearby. Mark still didn’t react.

Conversational, as if they had been having this conversation for hours, Donghyuck said, “Don’t tell me you’re bailing, asshole.” 

Mark flinched, dropping both his notebook and the pencil behind his ear. They clattered onto the ground with a sad slap against concrete, and Donghyuck threw his head back to laugh. 

“ _Fuck,_ ” Mark muttered, picking up the notebook and using it to smack the nearest part of Donghyuck it could reach. “I told you not to fucking scare me like that.” 

Donghyuck dodged easily, moving his shin to avoid Mark’s half-hearted strikes. “Hey, I’m not the one dazing off over here.” 

“No one asked you to come looking.” 

“Someone did, actually. I swung by your place and Mina’s there looking for you. Your mom let her in.” When Mark froze, Donghyuck clucked his tongue. Talking about Mina always made his throat feel tight and his gut unanchored, but by then he’d had several months of practice to get the hang of pretending otherwise. It wasn’t enough to fool their other friends, but sadly and maybe ironically, it was enough to fool Mark. “Why do you look so shocked that your girlfriend’s looking for you?” 

“I’m not. It’s just—”

Mark closed his mouth and didn’t finish.

Donghyuck squinted. Noting Mark’s distraction, he dove forward to grab the notebook, jumping to his feet and flipping to the first page his thumb stopped at. “Oh, look at that! A _love_ song.”

Mark took a moment to realize what had happened, and then he was standing too, giving chase without hesitation.

Donghyuck couldn't help but giggle as he ran away from Mark’s attempts to take the notebook, and he had to read in between puffs of breath, “ _Say goodbye to the city we used to love / say goodbye to all the kisses we could have shared / say goodbye to all the sunsets that made us what we are—_ why do I feel like I shouldn’t be reading this?” 

“Because you shouldn’t,” Mark gritted out, reaching for the notebook. Donghyuck tossed it to his other hand at the last minute, Mark’s hand snagging on thin air. “I’m _serious_ , Donghyuck, give it back.” 

Donghyuck stuck out his tongue. “Make me.” 

“Oh, you little shit—”

Donghyuck squealed as Mark chased him across the rooftop, the two of them going in circles around ventilation holes until Mark decides it was worth the risk to jump over one. He tackled Donghyuck to the floor until they were both scream-laughing, rolling over each other in an attempt to disentangle their legs.

They gave up easily, and in the end, they stayed lying on the flat ground, Mark’s notebook between them and their chests pumping up and down as they caught their breaths. 

“I hate you,” Mark rasped out.

Donghyuck tried to scoff. It came out ragged. “You’ve been saying that since elementary school, Mark, you’re gonna have to try harder to convince me.” 

“Maybe you’re why I’m moving away for college.” 

Donghyuck barked out a laugh. “Good. Leave. Maybe my life will finally be peaceful.” 

Mark nudged him, hard, and Donghyuck slapped his arm in return. They both laughed. 

Smile fading, Mark rolled to his side until he was facing Donghyuck. “You know I’m joking, right?” 

“Are you, though?” Donghyuck said with a grin, dragging his syllables out. 

Mark met his eyes unblinkingly. “I am.” 

The sun was starting to set, and above them, the sky was the color of brick. Sunrises and sunsets in New York didn’t often run on pastels, and all they had were streaks of orange in between dark blue over them as the sun lowered itself in the horizon. Donghyuck blinked upwards, at the blue and the orange, so he wouldn't have to look Mark in the eye.

“I know,” he murmured. “I’m joking, too. I’ll miss you, loser.” 

“I won’t be away forever.” 

“I know,” Donghyuck repeated. He felt like his heart was about to combust, his heartbeat even but his breathing erratic, like his body didn't know how to handle whatever it was he was feeling now. “It’s just gonna be weird. You’ve always lived next door.” 

Mark laughed again, but it was weak and flimsy. Donghyuck mustered up a smile anyway.

“I’ll come back,” Mark said. “For breaks, for the summer, for a weekend, even. And who knows, maybe you’ll join me over there in the fall. _Or_ you and the others will get your lucky break and I’ll be coming to one of your concerts before the next year is up.” 

“It’s not me and the others, though,” Donghyuck said. “It’s you, too.” 

Mark sighed. “It’s not for me, Hyuck. I write, that’s all. But all that band stuff, the performing in front of people—that’s always been you and Jeno and Jaemin.” 

Donghyuck didn’t know how to respond. He realized that his legs were still loosely tangled with Mark’s, and he pulled away hesitantly as he sat up. “Do you think we have it in us? To play for thousands of people?” 

Mark followed, bumping his shoulder against Donghyuck’s. “I’ve always known it for a fact.” 

“You’re just saying that to make me feel better.” 

Mark moved to stand. “When have I ever done that, with you? I’ve always been honest, haven’t I?” He stretched a hand out towards Donghyuck. “Now, come on, let’s go show all those people how lucky they are to get to watch you before you get big.” 

**Author's Note:**

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